Striped Bass with Heirloom Tomato Scampi

Ingredients

• 1 cup basil fresh packed
• 1 tablespoon capers drained chopped
• 4  celery stalks sliced
• 0.3 cup wine dry white
• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds dry toasted
• 6  garlic clove finely chopped
• 3 pounds heirloom tomatoes mixed cut in wedges
• 1  juice of lemon grated
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar 
• 4 servings pepper black freshly ground
• 2  shallots diced finely
• 24 ounces bass fillets 
• 0.5 bunch thyme sprigs 

Equipment

• frying pan
• paper towels
• oven

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a large ovenproof nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Season the fish liberally with salt and pepper and sprinkle with the lemon zest and juice. Once the oil begins to shimmer, place the fillets skin-side-down in the pan and let them cook, without moving them, until the skin is crisp and golden brown, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Give a light push to loosen the skin from the pan.
3. Add the thyme sprigs to the pan.
4. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake until the fish flakes easily with a fork, 6 to 8 minutes.
5. Remove fish from the oven and transfer to paper towels.
6. In a large skillet, heat the garlic oil over medium-high heat.
7. Add the garlic, shallots, and fennel seeds and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots are translucent, about 2 minutes.
8. Add the celery and capers and cook until the celery has softened, about 2 minutes.
9. Add the wine to the pan and cook until it is reduced by half, about 1 minute.
10. Add the vinegar, lemon zest and juice, tomatoes, and basil and cook for 1 to 2 minutes to incorporate the flavors and heat the tomatoes through.
11. Serve the bass fillets topped with the tomato scampi.
12. Other
13. Reprinted with permission from The Sweet Life: Diabetes Without Boundriesby Sam Talbot, (C) © 2011 Rodale